Social Icons

Pages

Thursday, 20 October 2016

What if all the #spiders disappeared?

Although some may wish it so, a world without spiders would be a miserable place.

When
I see spiders I think, "aww, like a puppy!" ... but for many the
reaction isn't quite so warm. More like, scream-panic-run. If you fall
into the latter camp, take heart, it is not an irrational thing to be
terrified of arachnids.

Researchers studying the topic
of arachnophobia say that the human visual system may retain ancestral
mechanisms uniquely dedicated to the quick noticing of immediate and
specific threats, such as spiders and snakes, which persistently
recurred throughout evolutionary time: "Spiders may be one of a very few
evolutionarily-persistent threats that are inherently specified for
visual detection and uniquely 'prepared' to capture attention and
awareness irrespective of any foreknowledge, personal importance, or
task-relevance."

But regardless if you coo or shriek at the sight
of a spider, one thing is for sure: We need them! And at the rate that
we are losing various species in general, it would be a good idea to
hold on to them. (Metaphorically speaking, of course.) Over-exuberant
collecting by hobbyists have pushed some spiders to the edge of
extinction; however, habitat fragmentation and loss are the most
pressing threat to our eight-legged friends.

By some accounts, the below comic would be unlikely, since without spiders, humanity would be nothing short of doomed!